Burning Ember
by Dawnfire8
Summary: Ember is devastated after her family abandons her. But, when a group of wild cats known as Shadowclan decide to allow her to join them, will she find that this is her true home? and what will she do about her shapeshifting abilities and the string of deaths and conflicts occurring around the lake? This is my first story so please review.
1. Chapter 1

The afternoon sun shined down on the grassy hills. The tall grass swayed in the gentle newleaf breeze. A stream weaved its way between the hills and emptied out into a vast blue lake. Small brown rabbits hopped around the moorland, searching for food while keeping an eye out for danger. If they sensed danger, the rabbits would hide in the holes that dotted the sides of the hills. In one of these holes, a kit named Ember slumbered.

Ember rolled around in her sleep, ruffling her already dirty gray fur. She grumbled in her sleep as if she was arguing with someone.

"No Mother. I didn't cover Minnow's fur with honey then dump feathers and ants on him," she whined. "No dinner tonight! But I didn't do anything and Father said we were eating something special tonight. Fine...I guess I will be sleeping early tonight."

Ember suddenly woke up as she remembered what came next. She yawned and looked around the burrow, her eyes like glowing orange orbs in the darkness. She sighed as she realized that it wasn't a dream and her family really had ditched her that night.

Tears welled up in her eyes. Why had they left her here out here? Had she been too naughty and they decided to abandon her? Ember began to whimper quietly at the thought that they didn't want her anymore.

A commotion coming from outside of her den snapped Ember out of her thoughts and she listened to figure out what was going on. _Thump, thump, thump_. The thumping sound of rabbits scrambling for cover filled her ears. The noise subsided after a few moments as the last rabbit darted into its hole and the moorland was silent once again.

"Must be another hawk," Ember muttered as she curled up to go back to sleep. She had just closed her eyes when she heard the pattering of paw steps. Her body stiffened as she realized that it was definitely not a hawk that scared the rabbits and her eyes flashed to the burrow's entrance which she had concealed with a pile of grass.

Ember was suddenly glad that she had remembered to keep her presence as hidden as possible, but she worried that she had still left signs since the paw steps seemed to be heading towards the burrow. The paw steps stopped right above her hole and she silently begged her heart to stop beating so loudly just in case it might be heard.

Once she had managed to calm her heart a little, she realized that she could hear muffled voices coming from whatever was out there and she strained her ears to listen in better.

"...Scent disappeared somewhere around here, Brightfang," a voice said sadly.

Ember flinched, realizing that they were probably looking for her. Luckily, she had been smart enough to cover up her scent with some smelly bulbs she found that her mother had called garlic once. The thought of her mother brought back good memories but she immediately pushed them away and strained her ears to hear what was being said.

"Don't worry, Crowpaw," another voice, who Ember assumed was Brightfang, mewed encouragingly. "You did a good job for a new apprentice. We'll just report to Shiningstorm that we scented a rogue in our territory."

The two moved away from the hole and Ember breathed a sigh of relief when she could no longer hear their paw steps. She lifted the lump of grass she had used to conceal the burrow's entrance and listened for anymore sounds before stepping out. The wind ruffled her smoky gray fur and her orange eyes seemed to flicker like fire as she inhaled deeply and surveyed the area.

The grass around her was a greenish yellow and was so tall that the kit could barely see over it by standing on her hind legs. To the west of her was the lake which glittered with sunlight and when Ember looked past it, she saw a pine forest.

_I wonder if there are fewer of those wild cats out there...Only one way to find out!_

She took a few paw steps towards the lake when she realized that the lake was too long for her to be able to swim to the pine forest. She decided that she would have to cross the stream that ran through the moorland then walk around the lake to reach the pine forest. Feeling satisfied with her plan, Ember headed on her way to the stream.

Ember's stomach began to growl after walking for a little while. She hadn't had anything to eat since this morning and that was a scrawny sparrow she had found laying around. She had tried to hunt some of the rabbits that lived on the moorland, but the grass didn't hide her very well and the rabbits had no trouble outrunning her. Not to mention that a five moon old cat that has never hunted in her life tends to make a poor hunter.

Ember groaned, imagining how the rabbits must be laughing at her lack of hunting skills. If she was going to eat, she would have to try to catch another rabbit or gnaw on her tail until she found another dead bird.

She looked around and spotted a rabbit nibbling on a blade of grass at the base of the hill she stood on. Ember clumsily got into the hunter's crouch position she had seen her parents do when they hunted and scooted down the hill to get closer to the rabbit. She smirked when she realized that its back was to her. She was only a tail length from the rabbit when she stepped on a dry leaf she hadn't noticed and froze when it crunched loudly under her weight.

The rabbit's head shot up and turned to stare at Ember, its eyes wide with horror. For what felt like a life time they stared at each other, the rabbit wondering how Ember had snuck up on it and Ember wondering why rabbits had to have such large ears.

Ember eventually grew impatient and meowed "hi. I'm hungry so I'll have to eat you." The rabbit responded by running for its life. "Mouse dung!" she cried as she raced after the rabbit.

The rabbit was faster than her and the gap between them widened the longer the chase dragged on. Ember silently wished she was fast like her mother and remembered how breathtaking it was to watch her mother sprint after her prey, her muscles rippling under her pelt.

Ember suddenly felt her body begin to tingle as it began to change shape. She grew larger and her thick fur thinned and turned a tawny color. Spots started to appear on her pelt until her whole body was covered in black spots. Her frame thinned and her legs became more muscular until she felt as light as a feather yet strong enough to jump over a tree.

Her speed slowly increased and Ember caught up with the rabbit in a matter of seconds. She sped past the rabbit and stopped in front of it, her orange eyes gleaming mischievously. The rabbit squeaked with surprise, tripped, and tumbled straight into her outstretched claws. She finished it off with a bite to its neck and sat down to catch her breath.

As she rested, she studied herself while her body started to change back to her normal form. She grinned proudly at the fact that she not only looked like her mother but she had also caught her first rabbit. She gazed at her fur as her spots faded and her pelt darkened until it was dark grey. Her body shrunk and relaxed until she looked like a normal kit.

_I guess I turned into a cheetah this time_.

The kit smiled cheerfully as she begun to eat her rabbit voraciously. Once Ember was done eating, she dug a hole and buried the bones so the wild cats wouldn't find them and padded down to the stream's edge.

She took a moment to study the stream and realized that it was flowing too fast for her to swim across. The water made gurgling noises as it flowed downstream and when Ember looked at the shapes under its surface she realized that the stream was filled with rocks that could hurt her badly if she crashed into one. She shuddered as she imagined what would happen if she fell in.

Deciding that she would have to jump over it, Ember walked along the stream to find a spot where the other side of the stream was close enough for her to reach. She eventually found a large branch floating near the other side of the stream but she would have to jump as far as she could to reach it.

"It's still a long jump," Ember thought aloud. "But if I leap far enough to land on that branch, I could use it to climb onto the other side."

Ember took a few steps away from the edge of the stream and focused on the branch sticking out of the water. Once she was ready, Ember sprinted forward and leapt as far as she could.

She flew over the stream and she let out a triumphant yowl as she neared the branch. She felt like she was like the eagles she saw in the mountains, soaring proudly in the sky. Her paws were only a mouse length away from the branch and pride filled Ember's heart.

_Splash_!

_I was _so_ close_, Ember mentally screamed as all of her pride was drained out of her body and was replaced with terror.

In a normal situation like when her family had to cross a slow-flowing brook, swimming would have been no problem for Ember because her brother, Minnow, had taught her how to swim. In fact, Ember considered swimming more of a pastime if anything, something done for fun on a nice day. This wasn't one of those days.

Water filled Ember's nose and grabbed at her thick fur, tugging her below the surface as if it were trying to drown her in the stream's watery depths. The current pulled Ember away from the branch before she had a chance to grab onto it and bashed her against rocks that dug into her pelt and left several bruises and scratches on her entire body.

Ember fought to reach the surface, clawing and kicking franticly as if the water was a fox's jaws she was fighting to free herself from. Unfortunately, her efforts were in vain as the current was too strong for her flailing to have any effect. Convinced that she was going to drown either way, she stopped struggling and allowed the stream to drag her down.

Eventually, the current slowed and Ember was dumped into the lake. By the time her head bobbed to the surface, she was bruised from head to tail and barely had enough energy left to swim to the beach she had surfaced near.

Climbing onto the beach and no longer having the water to support her weight, Ember's legs collapsed under her and she laid on the muddy beach as she vomited a lungful of water and something that may have been a fish at some point. Too exhausted to do anything else, Ember decided that the best thing to do is sleep and hope that nothing ate her while she rested and she immediately fell asleep after closing her eyes.

Unfortunately, a group of cats had spotted Ember while she was dragging herself out of the lake and padded up to investigate after she had fallen asleep. One of the three cats, a small gray she-cat with white paws, sniffed Ember before poking her wet fur with a paw.

"Is it dead? It's definitely a kit but it doesn't have a clan scent on it," the gray she-cat meowed before jumping backwards with her fur standing on end when Ember grunted.

An orange she-cat that had a large white spot on her chest moved closer to the kit and looked her over, her eyes filled with concern. "Poor kit. She must be so exhausted. Look at those cuts on her body! Let's take her to our camp so Willowleaf can wrap them with cobwebs."

She waved her tail at the white tom with a gray muzzle who was standing behind her. "Ashnose, I want you to report to Jaystar about what we've found on our patrol while Graypaw and I take this kit to the medicine cat."

Ashnose dipped his head and raced off into the pine forest while the orange she-cat gently picked up Ember by the scruff and followed Graypaw towards the Shadowclan camp.


	2. Shadowclan

_The forest was filled with shadows cast by trees and a few bushes that covered the ground. It was silent except for the occasional hoot of an owl and the gasps of two overdramatic kits as they listened to their mother as she told them stories about the many kinds of cats she has seen in the world._

"_And that is the story of Sharptooth the cougar," Mother finished. She looked down at the two kits who were huddled against her tawny fur and gazing at her with wide fearful eyes. The kit with fluffy gray fur opened her mouth to say something, but then changed her mind and closed it._

"_What is it, my little Ember?" Mother said gently, leaning her head down so she could hear her kits' tiny voices. _

_Ember's ears twitched nervously. "Sharptooth sounds like an evil cat. Why did he eat the other cats like that?"_

_Mother chuckled softly. "Sharptooth wasn't really evil. He just saw the cats as a source of food. Do you feel evil when you eat the prey your father catches for you?"_

_Ember opened her mouth to object, but closed it when realization swept over her. "No," she replied, her ears drooping with shame. _

"_Yet you ate it because you were hungry. You made sure the prey's lives didn't go to waste by eating them instead of leaving their bodies out to become crowfood."_

_Ember straightened up and smiled, feeling a little less ashamed. Minnow must have felt bad too because he smiled and nuzzled Mother's long leg. Mother purred and groomed his pelt. _

_Ember looked up at the stars lighting the sky._

I hope I don't grow up to be heartless like Sharptooth. I'm gonna be strong and brave, just like Father_, she thought before she curled up beside Minnow and fell asleep_.

Ember was awoken by the beams of sunlight streaming through the cracks in the roof of the den and falling on her face. Ember growled grumpily at the sun for waking her while she was having such a nice dream. She curled up in her comfy moss nest and started to go back to sleep.

_Wait a minute. I didn't fall asleep in a nest!_

Ember's eyes shot open. Much to her horror, she wasn't on the beach anymore. She was inside of a den inside a bramble bush. The floor of the den was sandy and covered in pine needles that helped to hide the faint sour smell emanating from somewhere within the bush. She glanced at the nest she was lying in and realized that it was a large clump of moss lined with feathers and soft grass.

Ember gasped with shock then flinched as pain shot through her body from the small movement. She looked down her back and saw that she was covered in several small cuts and bruises. She also noticed that her cuts were covered in cobwebs and had green stuff smeared on them.

_Where am I?_

Ember heard the sound of breathing behind her and she slowly turned around to come face-to-face with an old gray she-cat and her narrowed green eyes.

The she-cat's whiskers twitched. "You're awake," she rasped, her sour breath stinging Ember's eyes. Before the old she-cat could blink, Ember had ran screaming out of her den.

The she-cat shook her head with a sigh and went back to organizing the pile of herbs at the back of her den. "Kits these days."

Ember shot out of the den's entrance only to collide with another kit about her age. The other kit squealed with surprise as they were sent tumbling into the middle of a large hollow surrounded by a wall of bramble bushes and overhanging tree branches.

They finally slowed to a stop with the other kit lying on top of her with his tail resting on her nose. His tail began to tickle her nose and she resisted the urge to sneeze. Ember tried to stand up but the other kit's weight was pinning her down. She gave up on trying to lift the kit off of her and decided to take in her new surroundings.

Ember scanned the hollow and her ears drooped with embarrassment. There were several cats sitting around the hollow and all were staring at her and whispering to each other. Feeling very annoyed about how awkward her position must look, Ember started wriggling around to get the tom off of her.

"Get off me! You weigh as much as a fat old badger" she hissed at him. The kit groaned and started twitching his tail which further tickled her nose.

Huffing with annoyance, Ember reached up and sank her teeth into his tail. The tom suddenly yowled with surprise and hopped off of her. When Ember sat up and turned to glare at the kit, he was busy cuddling his tail.

"Watch where you're going, furball!" she snapped at him. The kit scowled at her and fluffed up his brown fur.

"Hey! You're the one who ran into me. _You_ should've been paying attention!" he hissed back at her.

Ember opened her mouth to retort but realized that he was right. Deciding to change the subject before he realized that she didn't have a comeback, she asked him who he was.

"My name is Sparrowkit. Cool name, huh?" he mewed proudly, puffing out his chest.

Ember smiled politely, but said nothing. All his name reminded her of is that pitiful sparrow she ate the other day. The black flecks on his brown fur did remind her of the sparrow's feathers though.

Ember's stomach growled at the thought of food. She was about to ask Sparrowkit for some food when another kit padded up to them.

"Hey Sparrowkit. Did you figure out whether that kit was a spy from another clan?" he mewed sarcastically.

"I don't think so, Bracketkit. She's too clumsy," Sparrowkit replied, obviously not noticing his sarcasm. Bracketkit rolled his eyes and glanced at Ember.

Ember then noticed how similar Bracketkit and Sparrowkit looked. They both had brown fur with black flecks but Bracketkit had green eyes while Sparrowkit had amber ones.

_They must be brothers_, Ember concluded.

"Who are you? Are you from another clan?" Bracketkit asked giving her pelt a sniff.

Ember gave him a puzzled look. "I'm Ember. What's a clan?" she asked. Sparrowkit gave her an incredulous look while Bracketkit sighed.

"A clan," Bracketkit explained, "is a group of cats who follow the warrior code."

"What's the warrior code?" Ember asked as more questions filled her head. Her thoughts were interrupted when her stomach suddenly growled loudly.

"Let's get something to eat first then we will answer each other's questions," Bracketkit mewed and motioned to a pile of prey at one side of the hollow. Ember checked to make sure that none of the other wild cats were near it and thankfully they weren't. She didn't quite trust them yet.

The three kits padded over to the freshkill pile. The pile was filled with different kinds of prey that ranged from birds, mice, and things Ember didn't even know the name of. Yet the delicious scent coming from the pile made Ember's mouth water.

Bracketkit fished out three creatures with smooth skin, long legs, and bulging eyes. "This is called a frog," Bracketkit explained, dropping one in front of her before turning back to study his own. "It might not look too appetizing but..."

Bracketkit trailed off and watched in silence as Ember tore into her frog and devoured it all in a few seconds. Ember looked up and noticed that both of the toms were staring at her with wide eyes.

"Oh. Was this yours?" she asked, waving her tail at the bones that she had licked cleaned.

"Anyway," Bracketkit mewed to change the subject, "you seem too clueless about the ways of the clans to be a clan cat. Though, you don't smell like a kittypet either. Where are you from?"

Ember pondered on Bracketkit's question. Ember couldn't remember where she was born and her parents never claimed one place as their home. She and her family had been constantly on the move, never staying in one place for more than a few days. They would stay a few days in a swamp then leave and stop beside a river for the night before moving on to a different location. In fact, her parents seemed more concerned with staying on the move than finding a good place to settle down.

"I don't know. My parents never told me where I was born. I can't ask them now since I don't know where they are," she sighed sadly.

Bracketkit's expression showed his pity. "Sparrowkit and I are having our apprentice ceremony today. That's when Jaystar makes us apprentices and gives us new names," Sparrowkit added the last part in quickly, knowing that Ember wouldn't know about the clan ceremonies either. "Maybe he will let you join Shadowclan."

"Who's Jaystar?" Ember asked, tilting her head. _These cats are weird._

"That would be me," a smooth voice whispered into her ear.

Ember leapt with surprised and whirled around, her fur on end and her claws unsheathed. Her eyes widened with fear and fascination at the sight of the two toms standing before her.

The tom standing directly in front of her looked young yet held an aura of authority. He had sleek black fur and sharp gray eyes that seemed to burrow right into her soul. Beside him stood a large muscular tom with short black fur and terrifyingly long sharp claws.

_These two look formidable but I can't show weakness to these rogues. I'm stronger than them._

The tom with gray eyes stepped closer and looked Ember over. Ember resisted the urge to flinch as he bent his head down and sniffed her pelt. After a few sniffs, he gave an approving nod and stepped back.

_Creep._

"I see that you two are showing our _guest_ around," Jaystar mewed smoothly, gazing at Sparrowkit and Bracketkit who cowered under his gaze. "What is your name?"

"My name's Ember," Ember replied evenly, making sure to maintain eye contact without staring to deep into those steely eyes.

Jaystar's eyes seemed to flash slightly at her name and he studied her more carefully.

"I see that you're braver than the average kit. You'd make a fine addition to this clan. Well, that's if you want to join."

"Sounds like a nice offer. I accept." _Did I just agree to live with these weird cats? Maybe part of my brain got lost in the lake. _

"I...see. We have been short on warriors ever since green cough hit our clan last leafbare."

Jaystar seemed a bit surprised that she had accepted his offer so quickly, but Ember had kinda considered joining before he asked. She was having enough trouble on her own so maybe she would be better off if she joined Shadowclan. Still, she will have to be careful around these cats, especially Jaystar.

Approving of her decision, Jaystar nodded his head and padded over to a hazel branch that stretched over the camp while the other tom stayed behind. The tom looked at Ember.

"We will be watching," his deep voice rumbled.

The tom gave the three kits one last look before stalking after Jaystar. Once they were out of earshot, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"They're scary aren't they," Sparrowkit mewed and laid his tail across her back comfortingly. "At least Jaystar let you join our clan. Now we can be apprentices together."

Ember still felt a little uncomfortable after seeing the way Jaystar had looked at her. It was as if he admired something about her. Nah, must have been her imagination.

Sparrowkit must have seen the concern on her face because he pressed his nose against her ear. "Don't worry. Once we become apprentices we can hunt together out in the forest where they can't watch us."

Feeling better after hearing this, Ember was about to ask if they could show her around when she heard a yowl from the center of the camp.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather for a clan meeting!"

Bracketkit and Sparrowkit raced over to the hazel branch where a group of cats had already gathered and Ember followed them to figure out what was happening.

When she caught up to the two toms, she noticed that the other cats had formed a circle around them. Some looked excited while others were giving her doubtful looks. She returned their looks with a perplexed stare before hearing someone clear their throat above her. When she looked up at the hazel branch, she saw Jaystar gazing down at her. A shiver shot through Ember.

_He was watching me,_ Ember realized and she silently wondered whether there was something wrong in Jaystar's head.

Once everyone had gathered, Jaystar cleared his throat again and gazed down at the three kits.

"Times have been hard this newleaf after we lost so many warriors to green cough, but I am proud to announce that we are apprenticing three kits. One of which has decided to join our clan."

There were a few growls from the crowd of cats but they were quickly silenced when Jaystar flicked his tail impatiently.

"Bracketkit, you are now six moons old and ready to become an apprentice. From this day, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Bracketpaw. Your mentor will be Willowleaf."

_Willowleaf? Isn't Willowleaf that old-,_ Ember turned around and nearly screamed her head off when she saw Willowleaf standing right next to her. _How does she do that?_

Willowleaf padded over to Bracketpaw and rested her nose on his muzzle.

"At the next half moon, we must travel to the Moonpool so Starclan may accept you as my apprentice," she rasped. Bracketpaw nodded and smiled happily at Sparrowkit. Sparrowkit smiled back and stepped forward.

"Sparrowkit, you are now six moons old and ready to become an apprentice. From this day, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Sparrowpaw. Your mentor will be Darkstorm."

A dark brown she-cat with stripes padded up to Sparrowpaw and rested her nose on his muzzle.

"You are a fierce and loyal warrior and I hope you will pass everything you know to Sparrowpaw."

Darkstorm nodded and sat beside Sparrowpaw. After Sparrowpaw's ceremony ended all eyes turned to Ember, if they weren't already there. Ember began to feel nervous under all of those stares but she reminded herself that she wanted to be brave like her father and forced herself to step forward.

"Ember, you are now six moons old and ready to become an apprentice. From this day, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Emberpaw. Your mentor will be Jaguarclaw."

Emberpaw, busy fussing over how weird new name sounded, was suddenly snapped back to attention when everyone gasped with surprise. She looked around and saw the muscular tom from earlier padding up to her. A feeling of dread crept over Emberpaw as she realized that this was her mentor.

Jaguarclaw rested his nose on Ember's muzzle and she stared at the faint scar on his cheek to avoid eye contact. He pulled away and gave her a smile that said, 'I'm going to work you to death.'

_Maybe I should have stayed in the lake and let myself drown. Who knows what he plans on doing to me._ Ember shuddered as she considered the possibilities.

"You are a powerful and fierce deputy. I hope you pass on everything you know to Emberpaw," Jaystar finished and jumped off the branch. He nodded to Jaguarclaw before disappearing into a den under the branch.

Jaguarclaw turned to Emberpaw, grinning evilly. "Let's get started."

As they exited the hollow and raced off into the pine forest, Ember thought of all the things he may be planning to do with her while they were out here, alone, and none of her guesses were too pleasant.

_I hope I live to see another day._


	3. Allegiances

Shadowclan

Leader: Jaystar- black tom with steel gray eyes

Deputy: Jaguarclaw- muscular black tom with unusually long claws

Med. cat: Willowleaf- light gray she-cat with green eyes

Apprentice: Bracketpaw

Warriors:

Cinderfang- gray tom with light gray paws

Apprentice: Maplepaw

Hawkwing- gray tabby she-cat

Flametail- bright orange she-cat with white spot on chest

Apprentice: Graypaw

Ashnose- white tom with gray muzzle

Gorseheart- brown tom with amber eyes

Brambleberry- black she-cat with amber eyes

Apprentice: Dingopaw

Bouldertail- dark gray tom

Darkstorm- dark brown she-cat with white muzzle and black stripes

Apprentice: Sparrowpaw

Mossfoot: gray she-cat with light brown patch on paw

Nighteye: Tortoiseshell she-cat with pale yellow eyes

Apprentices:

Dingopaw- light brown tom with white underbelly

Graypaw- light gray she-cat with white paws

Maplepaw- tortoiseshell she-cat with white paws

Sparrowpaw- light brown tom with black flecks and amber eyes

Bracketpaw- light brown tom with black flecks and green eyes

Queens:

Featherstorm- brown she-cat with black flecks

Elders:

Moletooth- brown tom with gray eyes

Mistfur- light gray she-cat with twisted paw

Thunderclan

Leader: Goldstar- golden brown tabby tom

Deputy: Blazetail- orange tom with white paws

Apprentice: Dawnpaw

Med. cat: Swanfeather- white she-cat with amber eyes

Warriors:

Stonefur- blue-gray tom with blue eyes

Pebbleheart- blue-gray she-cat with white tipped tail

Leafstorm- light brown she-cat

Apprentice: Falconpaw

Owlclaw- dark brown tom with amber eyes

Apprentice: Frostpaw

Snowfur- pure white she-cat

Apprentice: Rosepaw

Drizzlefur- blue-gray tom

Apprentice: Ravenpaw

Mintleaf- light brown she-cat with darker patches

Scratchpelt- dappled gray tom with strange itching pelt

Timberfoot- brown tom with long legs and tail

Scarfoot- russet tom with white slash on foreleg and amber eyes

Queens:

Birdsong- brown she-cat with blue eyes

Rabbitear- tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Elders:

Rockfall- gray tom with amber eyes

Honeydew- once beautiful golden brown she-cat

Streaktail- light gray tabby she-cat

Windclan

Leader: Icestar- muscular white tom with ice blue eyes

Deputy: Shiningstorm- white tom with black streaks down side

Med. cat: Dewspot- light gray tom with white spots

Warriors:

Vinefoot- skinny light gray she-cat

Redtail- dark ginger tom

Apprentice: Meadowpaw

Willowfang- brown she-cat without a tail

Apprentice: Eaglepaw

Shadefur- dark gray tom with green eyes

Sunflower- pretty golden brown she-cat with dark blue eyes

Brightfang- white she-cat with amber eyes

Apprentice: Crowpaw

Applefur- tortoiseshell she-cat

Smokefoot- dark gray tom

Spotfire- ginger she-cat with white spots

Queens:

Pineheart- brown she-cat with green eyes(Dapplekit, Silentkit, and Yellowkit)

Sleetclaw- white she-cat with gray eyes(Flamekit)

Riverclan

Leader: Reedstar- brown she-cat with a white chest and pale green eyes

Deputy: Stonegaze- black and white tom with dark brown eyes

Med. cat: Lilyfoot- pale orange she-cat with light green eyes

Apprentice: Reedpaw

Warriors:

Streamtail- gray tabby she-cat with long tail and black paws

Apprentice: Flowerpaw

Splashheart- brown tom with blue eyes

Shiverpelt- small silver tom that sometimes shivers

Apprentice: Lilypaw

Featherwhisker- black tom with curled whiskers

Emberfoot- ginger tom with black paws

Apprentice: Applepaw

Rushfur- gray and brown tom

Lynxear- black tom with furry ears

Petalwind- pretty white she-cat

Morningcloud- pale ginger she-cat with white paw

Moonlight- handsome white tom with light gray eyes

Queens:

Poppyseed- black she-cat(Mudkit and Lemonkit)

Elders:

Stormpelt- gray tom with dark stripes

Other cats:

Ember: smoky gray she-cat with orange eyes


	4. First Day

A canopy of tall pine trees casted shadows over the ground below. A few rays of sunlight peeked through the trees' thin branches and exposed the birds flying from tree to tree, building nests and whistling cheerful songs to their mates. The russet squirrels dotting the ground were nibbling on nuts before scurrying up the trees and flicking their tails in annoyance as two cats darted past below them.

Emberpaw pushed to keep up with Jaguarclaw but he was moving at a pace that she couldn't keep up with. She wondered if he was in a hurry to get somewhere, but seeing how easily he managed to maintain his pace without tiring made Emberpaw suspect otherwise. Perhaps he normally runs that fast and he expects Emberpaw to be able to keep up with him.

Emberpaw tripped on a tree root poking out of the ground and fell flat on her face. She picked herself up and tried to continue her chase after Jaguarclaw, who hadn't bothered to stop for her, but flinched when she realized that she had injured her paw.

She yowled in pain and sat down to examine her paw. It was a little swollen but looked fine otherwise. She tested her paw by placing it on the ground only to lift it back up when the pain in her paw worsened. No way she will be able to walk on it now.

The bushes ahead of her swished madly and Jaguarclaw padded up to her, looking very annoyed.

"Why did you stop?"

"I think I twisted my paw."

"Walk it off. We're almost there."

"But I can't walk!" Ember whined and waving her paw at Jaguarclaw. He swatted it away and Emberpaw cringed with pain.

"You can either sit here crying like a kit and wait for the foxes to find you or you can grow up and put up with the pain until we're done. It's your choice," Jaguarclaw growled before turning around and running off. Emberpaw called for him to come back but he ignored her.

Holding back her tears and gritting her teeth, she stood up on three legs and limped after him.

_Jaystar probably made him my mentor so he could keep an eye on me_. Emberpaw's whiskers twitched with disgust. _That creep._

When she finally caught up to Jaguarclaw, he was standing at the edge of a path made of some suspicious black stone. When she stepped closer to further examine it, she was hit by an acrid odor that made her nose wrinkle.

"This is the thunderpath. It marks the border between Shadowclan and Riverclan's territory. Riverclan," Jaguarclaw spat with disgust, "is full of cats that like to eat the slimy fish from the lake which tastes worse than crowfood and makes them smell."

Emberpaw blinked in surprise. "Actually, fish tastes pretty good. My brother, Minnow, would catch some for me and sometimes we'd spend the entire day eating and catching fish from rivers. I was never able to catch any though..." Emberpaw faltered when she noticed that Jaguarclaw was glaring at her.

"I want you to learn their scent, so if you catch their scent in our territory you will know that they are trespassing," he growled before turning away and disappearing into the pine forest.

Emberpaw inhaled deeply and detected the scent of fish over the acrid odor of the thunderpath. She smiled proudly at her use of her senses before limping after Jaguarclaw who had finally decided to slow his pace so she could keep up with him.

After padding through the forest for a while, they finally entered a clearing and Emberpaw's eyes widened in amazement as the trees suddenly opened up to a clear blue sky. A bluebird the same shade as the sky flew overhead and a few feathers fell off its wings. One of the feathers slowly drifted through the air before resting on the ground a few tail-lengths in front of her. Emberpaw stepped forward to get a closer look at the feather but Jaguarclaw stopped her with his tail.

"This is no time to play," he growled and swatted the feather away. Emberpaw watched sadly as the feather drifted off into the forest.

"This is the training hollow," Jaguarclaw explained, "this is where mentors teach their apprentices to fight. We will come here quite often."

Emberpaw took a glance around the clearing and noticed how the ground was covered in paw prints and scuff marks that must have been left by cats tussling in the clearing. The thought of learning the fighting styles of the clans both excited and terrified her. She was eager to receive battle training yet frightened by the fact that it would probably mean that she would have to face Jaguarclaw in combat. Especially when she considered what he could do with those long claws of his.

Jaguarclaw flicked his tail towards one side of the training hollow. "In that direction is the Thunderclan border. It begins at the greenleaf twolegplace where several twolegs gather during greenleaf, as if the name wasn't enough of a hint. Thunderclan is filled with cowards so they aren't too big of a problem for us." He glanced at Emberpaw. "We would have checked the border if _someone_ hadn't been so clumsy."

Emberpaw shrugged, already used to Jaguarclaw's sarcasm. "Maybe if _someone _hadn't been running so fast I would've been able to step over that branch," she snapped back, mimicking his tone.

Jaguarclaw whirled around, his eyes brimming with anger, and let out a deep growl. Emberpaw considered backing down but she remembered her promise to be brave when she faced these cats. She dug her claws into the ground and tensed her shoulders to keep herself from cringing as Jaguarclaw started stepping towards her.

He stalked up to her until their muzzles were nearly touching. "I admire your courage but know your place. I am your mentor and you are my apprentice and no apprentice of mine talks to me like that!"

"Well this apprentice does," Emberpaw spat.

Emberpaw immediately regretted her words as Jaguarclaw let out a roar and lunged towards Emberpaw. She tried to step out of the way, but her twisted paw slowed her down and Jaguarclaw barreled into her. Emberpaw kicked frantically with her hind paws as Jaguarclaw's weight began to rest on her, but they seemed to have no effect on Jaguarclaw's muscular frame.

Jaguarclaw placed a paw on her injured one and she yowled in pain even though he only pressed down lightly. She tried to pull away from Jaguarclaw but he had her pinned down and she had no hope of escaping. Jaguarclaw shoved his face close to hers and she cowered under his furious glare.

"Where's all of that bravado I saw a moment ago?" Jaguarclaw hissed into her face. "Here's a tip. Don't pick a fight you can't win."

He stepped off of her and waited for her to stand up. Emberpaw sat up but looked down at her paws in shame. "I was only trying to be strong for my family. I'm sorry."

_Oops,_ Jaguarclaw thought as he gazed down at Emberpaw's dejected form_._ For a second, Jaguarclaw felt guilt wash over him for being so hard on Emberpaw but turned away from Emberpaw before she could see it in his face. Sighing, he padded over to Emberpaw and sat down beside her.

"I know I was being too hard on you but all I want is to help you become stronger," he apologized but that didn't seem to help as tears began to fall onto Emberpaw's paws. Jaguarclaw flinched slightly when he saw how swollen her paw was.

"I think you show great potential. I'm sure you'll become a strong warrior but we've done enough for today. Let's go home," he meowed encouragingly.

Emberpaw looked up at him, her teary eyes wide and hopeful. "You really think so?"

Jaguarclaw tried to hide his disgust when he saw something unpleasant dripping from her nose and put on a false smile. "I know so."

Emberpaw smiled happily and raced over to the entrance of the clearing. "Race you to the camp," she squealed before dashing off into the forest. Jaguarclaw chuckled.

"Not on three legs you won't," he shouted as he chased after her. He eventually caught up with her and they both slowed to a trot.

"What was a kit like you doing in the lake?" Jaguarclaw questioned as the thought came to his head.

"Oh that." Emberpaw's tail twitched with embarrassment. "I sorta fell in and almost drowned."

Jaguarclaw rolled his eyes. "Don't you know that you shouldn't wander away from your parents? You could have died if we hadn't found you."

At the mention of parents, Emberpaw's ears drooped. "My parents abandoned me."

Jaguarclaw began to wonder whether he should keep his mouth shut since it seems like everything he says somehow upsets Emberpaw. Jaguarclaw was about to apologize when they reached the entrance to the camp. Jaguarclaw glanced at Emberpaw's injured paw. "Go see Willowleaf about that then get something to eat and relax for the rest of the day. You can't continue in this condition."

Emberpaw thanked Jaguarclaw before heading towards the den where she had awoken this morning. _Funny how Jaguarclaw suddenly started to act so nice back in the training hollow. Maybe I can use my tears to my advantage._

She smiled mischievously before sticking her head into the den and calling for Willowleaf. No answer. Emberpaw called her name again but no one appeared. She staggered to the back of the den where a pile of dried herbs were stacked up neatly.

_I guess Willowleaf isn't around. Maybe I can find something for my paw by myself._

Emberpaw reached for a pile of dark green leaves when a shout from behind her caused her to whirl around. Behind her stood Bracketpaw who was glaring at her with annoyance.

"What are you doing? Are you eating the herbs?" Bracketpaw demanded, shoving her aside and meticulously inspecting the piles of herbs.

"Actually I needed to get this checked," Emberpaw retorted indignantly. She showed him her swollen paw and he gasped with shock. "I'll go get Willowleaf. You just stay here until I get back. Don't eat the herbs."

Once Bracketpaw left the den and was out of earshot, Emberpaw laughed evilly. "Of course I wouldn't eat the herbs. Not while you're around." She eyed the pile of delicious-smelling leaves impishly. Before she could nibble on the tempting leaves she heard Willowleaf approaching her...for once.

Emberpaw, curled her tail around her legs and put on an innocent look as Willowleaf hobbled in with Bracketpaw trailing behind her.

"I'm too old for this," Willowleaf was muttering to herself before she stared at Emberpaw sourly. "Thanks for disturbing my nap. Now what do you want?"

"I hurt my paw," Emberpaw mewed and forced herself not to shy away from her breath. Willowleaf asked to see it and Emberpaw lifted her injured paw where Willowleaf could see it. Willowleaf carefully examined her paw before snorting contemptuously. "You woke me up over a twisted paw? You need to grow up."

Willowleaf looked over her shoulder to glare at Bracketpaw. "_And_ I already showed you the herbs you would need to use. Why didn't _you_ take care of this?"

"I'm sorry," Bracketpaw mewed apologetically, "I thought that I was going to do something wrong since it's only my first day."

Willowleaf rolled her eyes and motioned for Emberpaw to come closer. Emberpaw obliged unwillingly and tried to hold her breath. Willowleaf picked up a few dark leaves with small ridges and began to chew them up. Once the leaves had been chewed to a pulp, Willowleaf spat it onto Emberpaw's sore paw and started to rub it in. A bitter smell filled Emberpaw's nose as the poultice seeped through her fur and her nose wrinkled in disgust.

_No wonder Willowleaf smells so weird. Chewing all those herbs all day must stink, literally._

Once Willowleaf was done she licked her paws clean and motioned with her tail towards the pile of herbs she had used. "These are daisy leaves. They're normally used on sore joints, but they can also be used on sprained paws. I want you to remember the daisy's uses and its appearance, Bracketpaw. I better not find that all the things I'm teaching you are going nowhere."

Willowleaf continued to lecture Bracketpaw about the importance of learning the herbs while Emberpaw looked on with a bored expression. Emberpaw eventually grew tired and yawned loudly, earning her glares from Willowleaf and Bracketpaw. Emberpaw, getting the message, dipped her head politely and quickly limped out of the den, not wanting to get into trouble.

She looked at the sky to see that the sun was finally beginning to set. _What a long day. Guess I better get something to eat then get some rest._

She padded over to the freshkill pile and reached for a squirrel sitting on top of the pile when a dark paw darted forward and tore it out of her reach. She glanced up in surprise to find two she-cats scowling at her.

"Thought we'd just let you eat our prey, mange-pelt?" the black she-cat snarled, motioning towards the squirrel she held beneath her paws.

"We've had enough trouble with the other clans. The last thing we need is some rogue kit to walk into our clan and start eating our prey," the other she-cat, a tortoiseshell, hissed contemptuously.

Emberpaw's ears twitched with anger. "Who do you think you are? You can't tell me what I can eat!"

The black she-cat laughed. "Actually, I can. I'm Brambleberry and as a warrior, I have the power to tell when you can eat and neither me nor my dear friend, Maplepaw, believe that a rogue like you should be let into our clan." Brambleberry glanced at Maplepaw who returned her look with a smirk.

"Jaguarclaw told me to get something to eat so if you have a problem with me following _his_ orders, you can bring your complaints to him and see how _he_ handles them," Emberpaw said with a smile, knowing that the two she-cats wouldn't dare to confront Jaguarclaw. While the two she-cats were busy gawking at her snide remark, Emberpaw snatched the squirrel out of Brambleberry's grasp and strutted off before they had a chance to say anything else.

_I guess there's a few cats that aren't too happy about me being here. Not like they can do anything about it without disobeying Jaystar. Perhaps I don't have anything to worry about with those two._

Emberpaw heard someone shout her name and looked around until she spotted Sparrowpaw standing by the edge of the camp trying to get her attention. She padded over to him and sat beside him.

"Hi Emberpaw. How has your day been?" Sparrowpaw asked with a bright smile.

Emberpaw dropped her squirrel and let out a groan. "Long, painful, and depressing. Jaguarclaw made me run around the territory even though I had twisted my paw. What about you?"

"My day was great! Darkstorm took me out into the pine forest and showed me how to catch a mouse. Then she showed me this cool trick where she would hide in a shadow and nearly become invisible."

"Fantastic."

"Hey. I'm sorry your first day didn't go so well. Maybe tomorrow will be better."

Emberpaw gave him a doubtful look. A question suddenly popped into her head. "Sparrowpaw, do you know what's wrong with Maplepaw and Brambleberry? They started calling me names when I tried to get something from the freshkill pile."

Sparrowpaw sighed. "Just ignore those two. They like to pick on the younger cats. I bet they're just mad that Jaystar let a loner into our clan." He smiled slightly. "I'm glad you're here with us. I think you will make an amazing warrior."

Emberpaw blushed slightly. "Thanks. I'm glad to have you as a friend." They both smiled brightly before sharing the squirrel.

It was beginning to get dark by the time they were done eating and Sparrowpaw led her to a large den where the apprentices slept. The den was vacant so Emberpaw assumed that the other apprentices were still training with their mentors or, how Sparrowpaw put it to Emberpaw's disgust, sharing tongues.

Sparrowpaw motioned towards the nests lining one side of the den before plopping down on one of them. Emberpaw curled up in the nest next to him and let out a loud yawn.

"Goodnight, Emberpaw" Sparrowpaw yawned before closing his eyes.

"Goodnight, Sparrowpaw. Sweet dreams."


End file.
